AR Development

Google today announced at its I/O developer conference that it’s launching a new Android XR developer program, which will include XREAL’s upcoming AR glasses.

Called the ‘Android XR Developer Catalyst Program’, Google and AR hardware partner Xreal say they’ll be seeding program applicants with Project Aura dev kits, as well as tools and additional resources to get them creating fresh XR content.

Project Aura is the first pair of AR glasses running Google’s Android XR operating system, which the companies confirmed will ship sometime this year.

“As part of the program, Project Aura developer kits will become available globally, giving select developers early access to hardware along with tools and resources designed specifically for Android XR development on Project Aura,” Xreal and Google said.

“The goal is simple: empower developers to start building the XR apps and experiences they’ve always imagined.”

Developers hoping to join the program can apply today at g.co/dev/catalyst, and Google/Xreal will review submissions and provide Project Aura developer kits in the coming weeks.

South Korean augmented reality startup LetinAR has raised $18.5 million in fresh funding ahead of its planned IPO next year, something the company says will help scale production and accelerate commercialization of its AR optics.

As first reported by TechCrunch, LetinAR’s latest round was led by Korea Development Bank and included participation from Lotte Ventures, the investment arm of retail conglomerate Lotte Group, alongside additional undisclosed investors.

The funding brings LetinAR’s total raise to approximately $41.7 million, with previous investors including LG Electronics.

Founded in 2016 by CEO Jaehyeok Kim and CTO Jeonghun Ha, LetinAR develops compact optical modules for AR and smart glasses. Its proprietary ‘PinTILT’ technology is designed to deliver brighter images in thinner, lighter, and more power-efficient lenses than conventional waveguide or birdbath optics systems.

“We see AI glasses as that next platform,” Kim said, speaking to TechCrunch. “And the optical module is the hardest part to get right as AI glasses makers will need a lens that is thinner, lighter, and more power-efficient than what exists today.”

Notably, the company doesn’t manufacture complete AR or smart glasses, instead focusing on the sort of optical engines already in use with a few early collaborations, including NTT QONOQ Devices and Dynabook, formerly Toshiba Client Solutions.

The startup also said it’s engaged in R&D discussions with several major global tech companies regarding next-gen smart glasses platforms, with one such partner including Aegis Rider, a spinout from ETH Zurich Computer Vision Lab developing AI-powered augmented reality motorcycle helmets.

The funding round comes amid accelerating investment across the smart glasses sector. Companies including Meta, Google, Samsung, Apple, Huawei, Alibaba Group, and Xiaomi are all working on display-clad glasses of some sort.

The company plans to pursue a public listing in South Korea in 2027.

Images and specs of Samsung’s upcoming smart glasses may have already leaked, however a new report suggests we may get an eye-full at the company’s Galaxy Unpacked product event in July.

At the time of this writing, Samsung hasn’t confirmed when its next Unpacked event will be, however according to Seoul Economic Daily, the South Korean tech giant is reportedly getting ready to hold its its next big product launch event in London on July 22nd.

There, we can expect to see a first look at the Galaxy Z Fold8 and Flip8 next-gen foldables, Galaxy Watch9 series, as well as its first smart glasses, which the company confirmed will arrive sometime this year.

Citing industry sources, Samsung is reportedly working with South Korea-based eyewear brand Gentle Monster “to enhance design and practical competitiveness” of the device, which is set to run Google’s Android XR operating system.

At Google’s I/O developer conference in May, Google announced it was partnering with Gentle Monster in addition to separate efforts with Warby Parker, Gucci parent company Kering, and Samsung to produce the first slate of Android XR smart glasses, which are expected to compete with Ray-Ban Meta.

Late last year however, Samsung announced it was working with Gentle Monster and Warby Parker on styling, making it less clear what devices we’ll see and which company is principally behind them.

Like Ray-Ban Meta and Oakley Meta smart glasses, those initial units are expected to be audio-only, i.e. not include a display of any kind, but instead include microphones, camera, speakers, and onboard AI.

The report notes Samsung’s smart glasses, which some have dubbed ‘Galaxy Glasses’, are expected to launch in Q3 of this year.

Notably, they will be positioned “not as a mere wearable device but as a core ‘edge device’ that completes its AI ecosystem, entering into full-scale competition with global companies such as Meta of the U.S. and Xiaomi of China,” the report maintains.

Additionally, Samsung is expected to connect its smart glasses with its broader device ecosystem, including smartphones and SmartThings home appliances, the report says.

This follows a supposed leak of images and specs of Samsung’s first smart glasses, which is reportedly including specs very similar to the latest Ray-Ban Meta (Gen 2).

The company is also reportedly working on more advanced units, as per code mined from the most recent One UI 9 firmware, which revealed a new and wholly distinct model number that some have speculated could be a pair of smart glasses with built-in display.

If augmented reality glasses are the future, AR contact lenses are probably a bit farther away. Still, smart contact lens startup XPANCEO says it’s hoping to address at least one of the technology’s main issues with the inclusion of miniature solid-state batteries.

In partnership with France-based solid-state battery startup ITEN, XPANCEO announced it’s developing a proof of concept AR contact lens with a built-in microbattery—something the companies hope will solve a main challenge in ocular wearables right now: conventional batteries are thick, not durable enough, and aren’t suitable to be used in in devices worn directly on the human eye.

XPANCEO has been developing smart contact lenses with AR and health monitoring capabilities since its founding in 2021. Along the way, the UAE-based unicorn has been attempting to address the sort of strict design constraints inherent to XR contact lenses, such as thickness, mass, heat generation, and material selection, with biocompatibility and user safety.

When it comes to powering smart contacts, the company says that a number of tasks can be powered by simply harvesting energy from the user’s body, like the mechanical energy from blinking, thermal differences across the lens, electrochemical reactions with tear fluid, and integrated solar cells.

High-energy functions, like displaying AR imagery, require sustained “milliwatt-level power,” the company says, making high-density energy storage a must for future AR contacts. And at least one part of that challenge could be overcome with solid-state batteries, the companies maintain, which unlike lithium-ion cells, cannot leak, swell, or explode.

“If a failure occurs, the system simply stops supplying power. ITEN solutions can be engineered in ultra-thin, flexible formats compatible with soft contact-lens substrates, while still providing high enough power density for the short bursts of energy required by AR displays and wireless connectivity, without rapid degradation,” XPANCEO says.

Although promising, and potentially safer and more energy-dense than current battery tech, solid-state batteries are also expensive, hard to manufacture at scale, and not yet widely available despite active development by companies like Toyota and QuantumScape.

ITEN isn’t producing the sort of solid-state batteries you might find in future electric vehicles or home energy storage though; the Dardilly, France-based startup specializes in nanomaterial fabrication to produce fully ceramic electrodes with a patented “mesoporous structure”—essentially allowing small batteries to deliver higher power and charge and discharge more efficiently.

Since May 2025, ITEN has been mass-producing its first-gen solid-state ceramic microbatteries, which will find its way into XPANCEO’s in-development smart contacts.

“The ITEN–XPANCEO proof of concept demonstrates that high-power-density energy storage can now be manufactured in volume production and safely integrated into a contact lens, marking a crucial milestone in making smart contact lenses commercially viable,” XPANCEO says.

“By combining ITEN’s solid-state energy storage technology with cutting-edge smart lens innovation, the ITEN partnership with XPANCEO opens a new frontier in compact, high-power energy solutions,” adds Vincent Cobée, CEO of ITEN. “Together, we are enabling a new generation of intelligent and highly integrated systems that demand both performance and reliability—delivering power where space is limited and expectations are high, with the added assurance of full safety enabled by inherently stable, non-flammable product architecture.”

This follows XPANCEO’s latest (and largest) funding round to date, a Series A round last July which brought to the company $250 million in addition to giving it a $1.35 billion valuation.

Images and specs for Samsung’s upcoming smart glasses have reportedly leaked, showing off what could be the South Korean tech giant’s answer to Ray-Ban Meta.

The images, which were obtained by Android Headlines, don’t appear to be leaked marketing images as such, but rather “based on real-life pictures of a testing unit of these smart glasses,” Android Headlines says—ostensibly done to obscure the leak’s source.

The report also included a brief spec sheet for the company’s first smart glasses, which, much like Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, don’t include a display of any kind.

Samsung ‘Galaxy Glasses’ Specs (reported)

Processor	Qualcomm Snapdragon AR1
Battery	155mAh
Camera	12MP Sony IMX681
Connectivity	WiFi, Bluetooth 5.3
Weight	~50g
Audio	Directional speakers; bone-conduction tech in patents
Lenses	Photochromic transition lenses
Platform	Android XR with Gemini AI

While we’re still waiting for the full reveal, which could come in July for Samsung’s next Unpacked product showcase, it seems Samsung isn’t breaking any molds here as it appears to offering up a very Ray-Ban Meta-inspired design and spec sheet.

Granted, the reported spec sheet above is far from comprehensive—it doesn’t include information on photo/video capture resolution, frame rate, expected battery life, charging case, or even the onboard mic array.

Still, provided the specs are authentic, it will be packing (the same or similar) 12MP camera sensor, Qualcomm Snapdragon AR1 chipset (very likely also Gen 1), and a battery close to Ray-Ban Meta’s.

A notable inclusion are also photochromic transition lenses, which are optional paid add-ons for all of Ray-Ban Meta’s frame styles, which include Wayfarer, Skyler, Headliner, Blayzer and Scriber models.

Going by Android Headline’s images, one big difference appears to be the unit’s more prominent camera bumps—a possible stylistic choice so people nearby can more easily tell the user is essentially wearing camera glasses.

Notably, Meta is currently facing a class action lawsuit in the US over privacy concerns tied to its Ray-Ban smart glasses, as it’s been accused of sending private camera footage to an offshore subcontractor for manual review in effort to train its AI models.

Android Headlines also echoed rumors that Samsung’s smart glasses will be priced somewhere between $379 and $499, which happens to be Ray-Ban Meta’s exact price range for the models mentioned above (without optional add-ons).

While many are calling the device ‘Galaxy Glasses’, there is currently no indication this will be the final naming scheme, despite previous trademarks for the name filed in 2023.

That said, Samsung’s smart glasses won’t be only pair running Google’s Android XR operating system. Google announced last year it’s working with Gentle Monster and Warby Parker to create multiple models for release sometime this year, some of which may include displays.

Gucci parent company Kering also recently announced it’s working with Google to create Gucci-branded smart glasses, ostensibly also running Android XR.

This follows a recent report that Samsung is currently working on its second pair of smart glasses, which similar to Meta Ray-Ban Display, which was released last year in the US for $800.

Code named ‘Haean’, unconfirmed rumors suggest the display-clad Samsung glasses will arrive sometime in 2027, and be priced somewhere between $600 and $900.

French luxury group Kering announced it’s working with Google to bring Gucci-branded smart glasses to market sometime next year, potentially becoming the segment’s first luxury brand.

Kering, which also owns a host of brands including Yves Saint Laurent, Balenciaga, and Bottega Veneta, has been working to revive Gucci following a sharp decline in revenue—roughly 19–22% in 2025 alone—which also prompted the company to fire Gucci creative director Sabato De Sarno.

Gucci’s new strategy marks a return to classic designs as well as increased investment in eyewear and jewelry, a smaller segment which actually grew amid Gucci’s downward trajectory.

Speaking to Reuters, Kering CEO Luca de Meo also revealed the Gucci parent company is now working with Google to release a pair of smart glasses, noting that a pair could launch “[p]robably next year, 2027.”

Notably, this would put Kering in more direct competition with EssilorLuxottica, which extended a multi-year partnership to 2030 with Meta to produce Oakley and Ray-Ban smart glasses.

And business has been good. EssilorLuxxottica announced in February it sold over seven million smart glasses in 2025, effectively tripling lifetime smart glasses revenue since the release of Ray-Ban Meta (Gen 1) smart glasses in 2023.

Granted, that revenue bump accounted for multiple frame styles, including a hardware refresh of its popular Ray-Ban Meta glasses (Gen 2), Oakley Meta HSTN, Oakley Meta Vanguard, and its $800 Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses, the first to include a heads-up display.

With the addition of Gucci, it could potentially allow Google’s Android XR operating system to cover a much wider price range than either Meta or Apple, the latter of which is reportedly preparing a number of smart glasses styles for release in late 2026 or early 2027.

Google is also slated to release smart glasses frames from Gentle Monster and US-based eyewear brand Warby Parker, as well as Samsung, all of which are expected to release sometime this year.